Interact members attend WE Day
0
0
Recognized for global change this year, San Gabriel High School’s Interact Club members were accordingly rewarded with a trip to the WE Day event on April 7.
A celebration of young adults making a difference in their community and beyond, WE Day combines the energy of a live concert with the inspiration of astounding stories of leadership and change, ultimately in the hopes that the motivation they instill will be a catalyst for action. Over sixteen thousand students recognized for their work in the community and abroad were in attendance at The Forum in Inglewood, where the event took place. There, world-renowned humanitarians and celebrity ambassadors such as Selena Gomez, Charlize Theron, Seth Rogen, Joe Jonas, and Zooey Deschanel covered a vast array of topics from dismantling cultural appropriation to the HIV/AIDS stigma.
Sophomore Samantha Ortiz, who earned her attendance through committed service and volunteer work, described WE Day as an event that was nothing like anything she had ever experienced before.
“I enjoyed learning about what people do and how their stories are able to bring people together. It’s comforting to know that we are not alone and other people have similar stories to us,” Ortiz said.
Tickets cannot be purchased to the WE Day event. Instead, students earn their tickets by performing one local and one global action through their clubs at school. Like other service clubs, Interact dedicates the entire school year to taking on community projects such as organizing food drives and volunteering at local walks. However, what makes Interact Club, which stands for “international action,” unique from San Gabriel’s many other service clubs, is the fact that they also tackle global issues, such as this year’s Solar-aid project. Interact members had been raising money throughout the current school year to purchase solar lights, a sustainable development in comparison to the popular homemade kerosene lamps in Africa, which are a poor source of light and emit toxic black smoke, and donating them to African communities.
Senior Laura Huynh described the occasion as a very fun and unique field trip, and, more importantly, a really great experience, noting that a lot of the guest stars and speakers had a lot of inspirational things to say. Hearing the stories of children under the age of thirteen who have already had a significant impact on the world was a little unnerving for her, but was also taken as inspiration to do more.
“I have literally done nothing in my life compared to them,” she said. “Anyone is able to make a difference how matter how insignificant the work of one person may seem.”
